Motivation 

"Burning Your Bridges To The Past"

Motivation is a moment in your life when you have decided to commit yourself to something bigger than who you are. This commitment moves you to new levels of awareness you never thought were possible until now. Your new awareness can move mountains to get your goal completed. There is an old story that I want to share with you emphasizing this type of commitment.

Hernando Cortez landed in Mexico on the shores of the Yucatan in 1519. He had only one objective, his commitment in life, to capture and seize the great treasures known to be there that were held by the Aztec's Indians. Cortez's is a legendary figure in history who was committed to his mission of accomplishing his goal. He was so committed that he did the one of the most extraordinary and amazing feats in the world. He convinced an entire army of soldiers and sailors to set sail to the New World to find golden riches.

The first thing that comes to your mind is that this guy must be crazy or a little out of it. You ask, "How can a group of Spanish soldiers and sailors expect to overthrow an entire empire that has been in power for hundreds of years." Now lets put yourself in his shoes and figure out his secret. For a man of commitment like Cortez, the answer was easy. He was a firm believer in the philosophy of "All or Nothing" with a no option for failure. He made up his mind that he would conquer his fears, and be a hero to the Spanish King. To accomplish this goal, he said three words that changed the course of history. “Burn the Ships” was his way of motivating his men before he did battle with the Aztec Indians.

He told his men, if we are going home, we are going in their ships. Because of the act of burning their own ships, the commitment level of his men was raised to a whole new level. This new commitment level was much higher than any of the men, including Cortez, could have ever thought of possible. Cortez and his men conquered the Aztec Empire, an act that no one had ever been able to accomplish. With their victory brought the spoils of conquest, the Aztec treasures. Why did they win? They had no escape or place to go. There was no fall back position for them to retreat to. There was no choice! It was “succeed or die”. Their ships were burned. They had no way to get back to Spain.

In conclusion, to be successful, you must “Burn the Ships” of escape which are preventing you from succeeding in life. Develop a mentality of "Do or Die" trying to be successful. By removing any excuses, you will be forced to focus on how to make your life a success. Your commitment is the foundation of your success. Every accomplishment is always achieved by focusing on commitment. This is the key to our future for success.